“This isn’t the Serengeti. We live in a civilized community. I have a shower cap!” – Kate, white lioness, from Dreamworks’ TV Series Father of the Pride.
Summer turns to fall, and thoughts turn to Furry News…
Snubbing the critics, who seemed to invent a new language to describe their dislike, Dreamworks’ new animated TV series Father of the Pride had been doing just fine in the ratings. In fact, it was number one on Tuesday nights in some age groups, and it consistently rose well above the viewership of it’s immediate lead-in, Last Comic Standing 3. The official NBC web site for the show [http://www.nbc.com/nbc/Father_of_the_Pride/index.shtml] has background information on the characters, voice actors, and production of the episodes, as well as downloadable desktops featuring some of the furry cast. UPDATE: Confusion and conflicting information of late. First comes the news that Father of the Pride has been nominated for a People’s Choice Award in the category of “Favorite New TV Comedy” [http://www.pcavote.com for more information]. Then comes word that NBC is putting the show on hiatus through the November sweeps, with the last six episodes to air in December and January. Many are predicting that means that the show is effectively cancelled already. What can we say but – Stay Tuned!
Speaking of Dreamworks, the new CGI feature Shark Tale did well enough through it’s premiere weekend to pull the entire U.S. box office out of a major slump it’d been going through for more than a month. Taking in nearly $50 million the first weekend, Shark Tale set a new record for an October release, and rose to be number five on the list of top opening box office for an animated film.
Be on the lookout for the new music video for the song “Accidentally in Love” by Counting Crows, which was featured in the film Shrek 2. The video features lead singer Adam Duritz done up as a CGI rabbit, singing the song. The video was produced by Wit Animation in Venice, California. Look for the video at www.witanimation.com/cc.html. More videos, more bunnies: The Australian band Tism held a contest to create a music video for their song “Everyone Else Has Had More Sex Than Me”, from their CD called The White Albun [no, that’s not a typo!]. The winning video was a short created by the Australian animator Bernard Derriman (who’s also well known for creating the on-line flash animation series of shorts called Arj and Poopy). You can visit http://www.madman.com.au/tism/bunny/ to check out the video.
Before we miss it: Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends is the latest production from Cartoon Network and Powerpuff Girls creator Craig McCracken. Young Mac (a human) follows his imaginary friend Bloo (a blob) to the magical home where imaginary friends (of all shapes and sizes) go when their human pals have out-grown them. It’s running weekly on Cartoon Network now.
Nelvana is the production company for Timothy Goes To School, based on the best-selling books by Rosemary Wells. A young raccoon learns about kindergarten, new friends, and the world in this cartoon series running on The Learning Channel.
Over at PBS Kids, Postcards from Buster is a new spin-off series from the popular toon Arthur. Arthur’s rabbit sidekick Buster travels the world with his jet pilot father, writing Arthur frequently to show off what he’s seen and learned.
Meanwhile, Toon Disney presents the new TV series Dragon Booster. In this anime-inspired adventure series, Artha Penn and his dragon-steed, Beau, are a racing team by day and defenders of Earth by night.
New animated short from Canada to look for: Raven Tales. From www.animwatch.com: “The trickster myths of the Northwest Coast form the backbone to Raven Tales, the first animated film to be done by an all Canadian aboriginal team. The characters look like those found in Northwest Coast wood carvings, and the stories echo from antiquity. The team is hoping to make Raven Tales into a TV series for kids. Raven Tales looks to be both entertaining and enlightening, so I’d say their chancesof success are good. Meanwhile, Raven Tales is beginning its festival run. Perhaps it’s coming to a town near you? Check their web site [www.raventales.ca] for the latest schedule information”.
For fans of old comic strips and new animation: Fred Basset, created in 1963 by Alex Graham and syndicated in newspapers worldwide ever since, will be made into a new animated TV series by VGI Entertainment Ltd. in the U.K. The deal is set, but no word yet on a release date.
Toonz India is one of the more established animation houses in Asia. Examples of their original and co-production works can be seen at their web site, www.toonzanimationindia.com. Some recent works that might interest furry fans include The Adventures of Hanuman (telling the story of India’s legendary half-man/half-monkey warrior) and Frogskool.
<Sent in by Fred Patten:> Toon fans are already rejoicing because CBBC has commissioned Bristol-based shop Aardman Animation to produce a new 40-part series centering on Shaun the Sheep, the wooly star of Wallace and Gromit’s Oscar-winning short, A Close Shave (1996). The show will follow Shaun’s adventures as well as some of the other sheep in his flock. “We are delighted to be working so closely with the BBC on Shaun the Sheep and very happy to have secured such a strong U.K. platform for what we hope will become a significant global property for Aardman’s burgeoning kids business,” says Miles Bullough, Aardman’s exec producer of Shaun the Sheep.
<Also sent by Fred Patten:> Bardel Entertainment’s Silverwing, an animated action/adventure series about bats, is being repackaged as a trio of movies for both broadcast and home video distribution worldwide. Under the creative direction of veteran producer Chris Henderson (Scholastic Entertainment’s Clifford’s Really Big Movie) the 13×22 series has been edited into three 72-minute features. The Silverwing trilogy is set to air on TELETOON Canada in December. <Also from Bardel Entertainment:> Look for Dragons – Fire and Ice, a new fantasy CGI feature based on the popular Mega-Bloks toy line. Paramount Home Entertainment International will be distributing the video and DVD in the USA.
<From stopmotionanimation.com:> World-famous for portraying Gandalf and Gollum in the Lord of the Rings movies, Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis will meet again for a DreamWorks cartoon set in the sewers of London. They’ll be voice actors for Flushed Away, in which a well-heeled British rat becomes a sewer denizen, thanks to an accidental flush from his fancy penthouse apartment. Aardman Animation, the stop-motion British animation firm known for its Wallace and Gromit shorts, is partnering with DreamWorks. McKellen will provide the voice of the villain, a frog. Serkis will play Spike, a rat who’s his partner in crime. Hugh Jackman is in early talks to play Roddy, the pampered rodent whose pride goes down the drain. [Check out http://forum.bcdb.com/gforum.cgi?post=32041 for more information.]
<From Animation Magazine:> “Roly in the Country with Blue – The new 3D animation series, due for delivery in September 2005, is being produced in Australia by Dreamcloud, the new joint venture company set up earlier this year by Cloud 9 Limited [England] and Brisbane-based animators Light Knights Entertainment. Roly in the Country with Blue tracks the adventures of a loveable and vulnerable polar bear cub called Roly, and his best friend, a savvy snail called Blue, who live in the countryside with a range of woodland animals. The series tackles themes of discovery and exploration, as Roly and his friends learn about themselves, the natural world, tolerance, love and friendship.” [Find out more at http://www.entercloud9.com.] In another part of Europe, BRB Internacional has produced Bernard, a new claymation series following the adventures of a clumsy and widely-traveled polar bear. Currently they’re seeking a syndication deal as well.
A collaboration between Canada’s Cite-Amerique, Germany’s Scopas Median AG, and Korea’s Image Plus brings us Dragon, a new stop-motion animated TV series that’s currently looking for syndication. It follows the adventures of a dragon named Dragon, and it’s based on the Dragon Tales series by Captain Underpants creator Dav Pilkey.
The new teen-oriented TV animation series called Bratz has an interesting sideline: Bratz Petz, a web site dedicated to artwork and toys featuring the pet characters from the series. Those pets include cats, dogs, and vixens! Check out www.bratzpetz.com to find out more.
Now available on DVD: Seasons 1 and 2 of the original Ren & Stimpy series have been released by Paramont Home Entertainment. 18 episodes on three DVDs, all uncut for you lovers of strange chihuahuas and fat silly cats. Happy Happy Joy Joy!
This November, look for a new direct-to-video and DVD release from Disney, Mickey’s Twice Upon a Christmas. It features many of the well-known Disney crew (Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and all their friends) in a Christmas themed CGI film (yes that’s right, Mickey Mouse in 3-D!). Also look for the full-color comic book adaptation, available soon from Gemstone Publishing.
Jackie Legs, the tricky kangaroo from Kangaroo Jack (who was, let’s face it, probably the only thing that furry fans paid attention to in that film) returns in a new animated feature sequel, Kangaroo Jack – G’Day USA. This time Jackie – still wearing that red jacket – and his human pals are bouncing around Las Vegas, investigating a jewel smuggling ring. This direct-to-DVD release comes out from Warner Home Video in November.
Late in November, the “Monster Wars” 3-part episode from Godzilla: The Animated Series (based on the Tristar film) will be released as a DVD from Columbia/TriStar Home Video. For those who like their science fiction more soft and fuzzy, look for Star Wars Animated Adventures: Ewoks on DVD from Fox Home Entertainment. The series follows the adventures of Wicket the Ewok and his friends, two years before the Battle of Endor. Also from Fox, look for the original live action Caravan of Courage/Battle for Endor featurettes on DVD, featuring Warwick Davis as the original Wicket, out to save his young human friends and his tribe.
Coming soon on DVD from Hanna Barbera (and Warner Home Video): Tom and Jerry in Mission to Mars, an animated feature where the famous cat and mouse accidentally stow away on the first rocket mission to the red planet. Also look for the complete original 30 episodes of the classic Top Cat TV series, coming out in a 4-DVD box set.
A warning, as it were, from the Previews magalog: “On December 31st, 2004, Cartoon Books will take the first six Bone [black & white] trade books off the market. This is to make way for Scholastic’s full-color launch of Bone: Out from Boneville in Spring 2005. Scholastic’s publication of the Bone series will come out every six months, so some of these classic titles will not be seen again for years. Note: The final trilogy, Bone volumes 7, 8, and 9, will continue to be available until next summer.”
Issue #13 of Teen Titans Go! finds Garth the Beast Boy in an interesting assignment: Follow a guilty werewolf around. It seems that he’s hired the Titans to prevent him from making a mess – and Beast Boy gets the job! This issue features the artwork of Todd Nauck.
Wild Girl is a new 6-issue miniseries in full color from Wildstorm Press. Meet Rosa Torez, a 13-year-old girl who can communicate with animals. The discovery of her powers puts her whole family in danger – and both humans and animals seem to be playing her to their own ends. Brought to you by Leah Moore, John Reppion, Shawn McManus, and J. H. Williams III.
Two new collections to watch out for, both from Image Comics. Tales of Tellos is a new 3-issue full-color miniseries, teaming up Tellos creator Todd Dezago with some of Europe’s finest comic book illustrators to help fill in spaces between old story lines, and set things up for the new series Tellos: Second Coming, due in early 2005. The fantasy comic series Tales of the Realm arrives in a trade paperback collection this fall, and also comes out in a limited edition signed hardcover. The story, if you don’t know, follows three TV actors in a fantasy TV series – actors who happen to live in a world where elves, trolls, and talking dragons aren’t special effects, they’re real live members of the cast!
Cartoon Books presents the long-awaited single-volume edition of Bone by Jeff Smith. And now the award-winning black & white series is available in a limited edition hardcover – limited to 2,000 copies, that is! The hardcover edition features a new end map of the Valley by Akiko creator Mark Crilley, and full-color signed and numbered book plate by Jeff Smith.
Skyscrapers of the Midwest is a well-known series of mini-comics by Joshua W. Cotter, featuring a cast of rural cats who explore the loneliness and sad times of life in the country. Well now that black & white mini-comic series has been collected in a new full-sized comic book series from Adhouse Books. Coming in December.
Epoch Comics celebrate their 10th anniversary with the release of Monkey and the Moon Patrol #1, created in black & white by Rick Lundeen. Check out Earth’s best defense: The silent simian and his lunar band. You heard it here, furs.
Over at Shanda Fantasy Arts, look for the premier issue of Yenny by Dave Alvarez (DC’s Looney Tunes comic). Young Yenny wants to be a model, but her feet are too big. She wants to have a doggie, but instead she has a talking iguana. And this is there life, in black & white.
New this December from Airwave Comics is the Meow-Wow! one-shot, featuring the black & white adventures of one Kitsi the Happy Adventure Cat – and her archrival, Mr. Poop-Squeek. Yes. The comic features Bart Simpson Comics writer Chris Yambar and a 7-year-old art phenom named Layne Toth.
The premier issue of Lunar Lizard by Art Baltazar is coming in black & white this December from Blind Wolf Comics. Karl (the “Lunar Lizard”) and his monkey sidekick Quigley are off on an interplanetary quest in the name of Science… and escaping the occasional evil green alien.
Also in December, Silent Devil Productions presents the Silent Forest Television Parody Special featuring black & white parodies (many of them with furries) of some of your favorite current TV shows. Including a furry parody of Smallville, another called “Tale of Two Wolves” (starring Bubba, the Redneck Werewolf), and another called “One Eye for the Stray Cat”.
New magazine on the shelves, from Wild Side Press: Cat Tales — featuring the finest in cat-related fiction — debuts with the December 2004 issue. The first issue features work by Jack Williamson, Nancy Springer, Fritz Leiber, and many more. Great feline fun! (Look at www.wildsidepress.com for more information.)
Stumbled across: Freaks! How to Draw Fantasy Creatures is the (rather misleading) name of a new full-color book of art instruction, covering many aspects of drawing anthropomorphic animals and animal-people. Edited by Steve Miller (and published by Watson-Guptill Publications), the book features detailed anatomy discussions of humans and several different animal species, and includes instructions and ideas for digitigrade legs, adding a tail, making ears look right on the head, and so forth. Participating artists include Arthur Adams (Monkeyman and O’Brian), Bryan Baugh, Brett Booth (Thundercats: Dogs of War), Mitch Byrd, Steve Miller, and Todd Nauck, with coloring provided by Jessica Ruffner Booth and Steve Hamaker.
New from Dark Horse Comics comes Kingdom of the Wicked, a full-color graphic novel in hardcover by Ian Edgington and D’Israeli. World-renowned children’s book author Chris Grahame has cracked under the pressure of his publishing and publicity schedule. In his mind, he returns to Castrovalva, a magical land he dreamed up in his childhood. It’s inhabited by teddy bears… and now, Chris finds it in the grip of war.
The 1995 edition of The Art of Walt Disney has been revised, expanded, and re-released for 2004. This huge, famous collection of animation art, backgrounds, architectural drawings from the theme parks, and character designs now features works up to and including the Pixar CGI films, Brother Bear, and Home on the Range. Edited by Christopher Finch, with a forward by Roy Disney, it arrives in November from Harry N. Abrams Publishing. Speaking of animation art, look for Animation Art, edited by Jerry Beck. Coming in trade paperback from Harper Collins, it takes a look at the history of animation – and the people who made it – from Little Nemo to Finding Nemo.
All Things Alice: The Wit, Wisdom, and Wonderland of Lewis Carroll is a new hardcover book by Linda Sunshine that features artwork from many editions of Carroll’s Alice books around the world, as well as quotations from the books and Carroll’s notes and journals. It’s available now from Clarkson Potter.
A new all-in-one edition of C. S. Lewis’ famous Chronicles of Narnia has been released, with illustrations by Pauline Baynes, the original Narnia illustrator. This hardcover edition from Harper Collins also features an introduction by Narnia scholar Brian Sibley and an essay on writing by C. S. Lewis himself.
Celebrating Dr. Seuss’ 100th birthday, Random House presents Your Favorite Seuss: A Baker’s Dozen by the One and Only Dr. Seuss, edited by Janet Schulman and Cathy Goldsmith. This new hardcover collects 13 classic stories, including The Cat in the Hat, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Green Eggs and Ham, Horton Hears a Who, The Lorax, and many more, all with the original illustrations in full color. It also features photographs, memorabilia, and original sketches from the Dr. himself, Ted Geisel, as well as essays from many famous folks whose lives have been affected by Dr. Seuss books.
The Katurran Odyssey is a new fantasy graphic novel, written by David Michael Wieger (a well-known screenwriter) and profusely illustrated by Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’s conceptual designer, Terryl Whitlatch. Katook, a small but courageous young lemur, is banished from his homeland by his strict village elders. That begins a long and perilous trek across his island home, meeting friends and adversaries, all in search of the secret behind the Long Winter. It’s available in hardcover from Simon & Schuster. Also, look for the soundtrack album to the story, available on CD. It’s created by Jeff Johnson and Brian Dunning, both famous in the world of new age music.
Comic book writer Andy Mangels presents Animation on DVD: The Ultimate Guide, in trade paperback from Stonebridge Press. Listings and reviews of over 1.450 animated titles, complete with ratings, cover art, film data, critical notes, special features, and a comprehensive index. Visit www.stonebridge.com for more information.
Newly available is Zoonauts, an illustrated book created by David Simons, written by Richard Mueller (Buzz Lightyear of Star Command), and illustrated by Egidio Victor Dal Chele (Scooby Doo and the Alien Invaders). Here’s the story: Young Jan is an eighth-grader with an amazing secret… She’s the student of intelligent animals who’re training her to help them in defeating a race of alien invaders who are currently bound for Earth. Zoonauts is also currently in pre-production for an animated feature film or TV series. Visit www.shangrilagifts.org/new/zoonauts.html to find out more.
Coming this December to the “Import” section of your local comic book shop: Wolf’s Rain – Seeking “Rakuen” in trade paperback. It presents a wealth of artwork and design materials from the popular new anime series Wolf’s Rain, created by Toshihiro Kawamoto (Cowboy Bebop). Oh, in case you don’t know – the story involves a race of wolves who must disguise themselves as humans in order to survive in a dark future.
Next January, veteran animation director Don Bluth returns with The Art of Animation Drawing trade paperback, released by Dark Horse Comics. A companion book to 2004’s The Art of the Storyboard, this book focuses on creating, designing, and animating characters, from making them move to lining things up with the vocal tracks, and more.
From Fantasy Flight Games: “The primary story in Fireborn is that of remembering, and of self-discovery. You are a dragon eternal, reincarnated throughout the ages in human form. In your previous life as an all-powerful creature, you failed to stop an apocalypse that took the lives of millions, including yours. Now you are but a human, fragile and ignorant, and yet you must try again. You have one advantage now that you did not have then: Desperation.” Those of you with Adobe Acrobat can find out more about this new role playing game by looking at http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/PDF/FirebornGMPreviewLowres.pdf. Along much the same line, The I of the Dragon is a new FRP/adventure game in which you are a dragon, charged with saving a race of humans from evil monsters. No sweat. Check out http://www.i-dragon.com/index_eng.htm for more details. And hey, speaking of dragons as player characters: That’s the whole idea behind The Complete Guide to Dragonkin (from Goodman Games), a new book for the d20 FRP gaming system that details lives and powers of half-human/half-dragons.
The new video game Scaler starts with an interesting premise: A young boy discovers that his weird neighbor is in fact out to conquer the world using an army of genetically altered reptile monsters – and for his troubles, finds himself transformed into a super-powered reptile creature himself! Now his challenge is to save the world and get himself changed back to “normal” (if you’re the sort who wants to do that). It’s available in several game formats from Take-Two Interactive Software. Visit http://www.globalstarsoftware.com/scaler for a preview.
Something completely different for your toy box or your plush pile: Teddy Scares, a new series of horrific cuddly-bears. With names like “Rita Mortis” and “Redmond Gore”, these plushies from beyond the grave are each sold in a tomb-shaped display box. You heard it here.
Chalk it up to “Only In America”: Godzilla, the fire-breathing movie monster born in a nuclear accident, is joining Hollywood royalty with a star on the Walk of Fame. A ceremony will honor the giant lizard in front of Hollywood Boulevard’s famed Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on Nov. 29, the world premiere of Godzilla: Final Wars, said Shogo Tomiyama, president of Toho Pictures Inc. The movie, the 28th in the series, will mark 50 years since Godzilla emerged from the sea. <From MSNBC.msn.com>
Obituaries: The animation world was saddened this fall by the loss of animator Frank Thomas at the age of 92. One of the last remaining of Disney’s original “Nine Old Men” (in fact, Thomas’ long-time friend and associate Ollie Johnson is the very last one), Frank joined Disney Studios in 1934. Frank soon became not only one of the leading animators, but a true innovator of the art form. Some of the scenes for which Thomas would become famous include Thumper teaching Bambi to ice skate in Bambi, the back alley spaghetti dinner in Lady and the Tramp, the love-sick squirrel who goes after the transformed Arthur in The Sword and the Stone, and the dancing penguins from Mary Poppins. After he retired following The Rescuers, Frank got together with Ollie to write several books about animation, including one, Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life, which has since become a bible for up and coming animators. [You can find out more about the life and work of Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson at their web site, www.frankandollie.com]
“I’m a whore! I’m a whore for their applause! And you wouldn’t hit a whore, would you Larry?” – Blake, royal white tiger, from Dreamworks’ TV Series Father of the Pride.
Furry Stuff has ConFurence Stuff! The original ConFurence General Store (for ConFurences 0 – 10) has moved to the new Furry Stuff web portal. Check them out at www.furrystuff.com to find out more – soon, pictures of what’s available will be up on-line. Three of the popular ConFurence T-Shirt designs are still available for a limited time: “Furries in Force” (black on honey-color) by Eric Schwartz from CF7, “Furries in Love” (black and pink on grey) by Rachael Cawley from CF9, and “Sydney’s World” (Sydney on a colored globe on green) by Ken Sample from CF10. Plus, a very few of Mitch Beiro’s colorful “Furries in Space” T-shirts remain (write for sizes available). They also still offer the ConFurence Seven Highlights Video, as well as the brand new ConFurence Eight – Music and Mirth and ConFurence Nine – Furries in Love highlights videos too! And coming soon, a special combination video from CF5 and CF6! Not to mention many cool prints and extra Souvenir Books from past ConFurences! To find a complete list, visit the Furry Stuff web site, or send them an SASE at: Furry Stuff, P.O. Box 1958, Garden Grove, CA 92842-1958.
Help us keep up with you! So, we hear you say, how do I keep up my Subscription to In-Fur-Nation? We’re glad you asked! A subscription to In-Fur-Nation will bring you even more of what furry fans are looking for around the globe. Find out what to look for, and where to go! It’s now brought right to your doorstep four times a year (winter, spring, summer, and fall), and still for just a whopping $5.00 for a year’s subscription. That’s right, for a year. Just send a check made out to “Furry Stuff” (and note it’s for In-Fur-Nation), or heck, just send a $5.00 bill in a darkened envelope. (Trust us, it’s an old tradition in the ‘zine community. It works). To subscribe, to find out more info, or to send us notes for our Furry News, write us at: In-Fur-Nation, P.O. Box 1958, Garden Grove, CA 92842-1958.
A Note to the staff members of our many Furry Conventions: Hey! We wanna help you get the word out! Having a cool-looking web site is a neat thing, but remember: There are still a significant number of fans out there (furry and otherwise) who don’t use the World Wide Web, or who don’t use it to it’s full potential. For them, there’s this cool old thing folks on the Internet call Snail Mail. That’s where we come in! Send us information, and let us help you get the word out to over 1,000 furry fans, artists, dealers, and publishers in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan… Look below for our reasonable ad rates, and don’t forget… send us text blurbs and you get in for free!
A Request to Our Readers: Hey, got a favorite comic or book store that carries your favorite furry titles, or that you wish would carry more? Give us their address! We’ll send them a copy of In-Fur-Nation each quarter, and keep them abreast of the kind of comics and media that you would like to see on their shelves! Remember, they can’t order it if they don’t know it’s out there! As an alternate: Know of any good comic zines or web sites that might be looking to trade issues?
Guess what? In-Fur-Nation is looking for Field Reporters! As an on-going feature, we’re going to present profiles of furry creators and furry-oriented companies that are helping to promote products and media of interest to funny animal fans all over. So, like to help out? Know a comic book creator, animator, publisher, or other such person in the field who’d like to discuss what furries mean to them, or to the world? Talk to them, write down what they say… then give us a write-up, about 300-500 words, and we’ll include it as a blurb in an upcoming INF, and give you credit for it. [We do maintain the right to edit for clarity and length, mind you.] And hey, we’re looking for furry convention reviews and anecdotes too! Send hard copies to the Furry Stuff address above, or, you can e-mail your submission to Rod O’Riley at mink@firstlight.net.
Advertising in In-Fur-Nation: For those who’ve been asking, ads in In-Fur-Nation come in these sizes: 1/8-page “business card” size for $5.00 per issue, and 1/4-page size (4 1/2″ tall by 3 1/4″ wide) for $10.00 per issue. Full-page inclusions can also be arranged for $50.00 an issue. Check should be made out to Furry Stuff. Send camera-ready art and text to P.O. Box 1958, Garden Grove, CA 92642-1958, or send email to mink@firstlight.net.
(Many thanks to all the people who helped provide information for this issue both by mail and via Internet! Invaluable help was also received from the web masters of the various furry conventions out there.)
More Furry Conventions All Around!
Midwest Fur Fest, 2004 – “Around the World in 80 Days”
November 19th thru 21st, once again at the Hyatt Regency Woodfield in Schaumburg, Illinois.
Special Guests this year include David Gilbert (creator of the Buckles comic strip), Ursula Vernon (Ursa Major Award-winning artist), and Jared Ledger (Scribblefox, artist and costumer).
The convention schedule and much more information is available now at their web site, http://www.furfest.org. For general information, e-mail them at info@furfest.org.
The Hyatt Regency Woodfield is located in Schaumburg, Illinois (a nearby suburb of Chicago). The address is 1800 E. Golf Road, Schaumburg, IL 60173, USA. The telephone number is (847) 605-1234. From the MWFF web site: “IMPORTANT! In response a huge demand for rooms, the hotel has expanded our room block. When you call to reserve, be sure to request “Local Reservations”. If you call/are transferred to the national Hyatt reservation number, you may be told that the hotel is sold out. This is not true! If you speak with Local Reservations they will be happy to help you.” Room Rates at MWFF are $89.00 per night – Make sure you mention that you are with Midwest Furfest!
Membership Registration for all three days of the convention is $40.00, at the door only now. Sponsor Memberships are also available for $100.00 (Includes a meal with the Guests of Honor, a T-Shirt, and other stuff. Such a deal!)
For more information the old-fashioned way (write to them quickly!) you can send a note to: Midwest Furry Fandom, P.O. Box 3561, Urbana, IL 61803.
Further Confusion A.D. 2005 – Furries of the Nile
January 13th – 17th, 2005, at the Doubletree Hotel in San Jose, California
From the web site at www.furtherconfusion.org: “Further Confusion is one of the largest international conventions celebrating anthropomorphics in all its guises. With an attendance of over 1,400 and growing, it is one of the premiere events of its kind. Further Confusion includes charitable benefits, educational seminars, art shows, panels and general social activities. It was the first event sponsored by Anthropomorphic Arts and Education Inc. and continues to be its largest.”
FC’s Guests of Honor for 2005 include science fiction/fantasy novelist Alan Dean Foster (author of an incalculable number of books with cool furry characters; including the Spellsinger series, the Humanx Commonwealth series, Cachalot, Icerigger and its sequels, Guardians of Light, and many many more), writer and artist Walter Crane (creator of the comic book series Sheba, from Sick Mind Press), and the musical group Uffington Horse (featuring last year’s musical guest, Heather Alexander).
Membership at FC2005 start at $45.00 for full membership (five days!), and goes up to $100.00 for a Sponsorship and $200.00 for a patron membership (check out the web site for more details). Mail-in registration will only be accepted until December 31, 2004, so get yours in soon. Information on Dealer Tables, Artists Alley (The Furry Marketplace), and on-line registration can be found on the web site too. Or, you can write them at: Further Confusion Registration, 105 Serra Way PMB 236, Milpitas, CA 95035.
Rooms at the Doubletree Hotel (just a stone’s throw from the San Jose Int’l Airport) are available for $89.00 a night (up to four furs), with Parlor Suites available for $225.00 a night. To make a reservation, please call (408) 453-4000. If you’re using the phone, please use the Convention Code FURCON or FURTHER CONFUSION in making your reservations.
Furry Weekend Atlanta
February 11th thru 13th, 2005, in Atlanta, Georgia, USA
FWA welcomes Special Guest Artists Jessie T. Wolf and Fel. Plus an appearance by 2, the Ranting Gryphon, a special screening of Kaze, Ghost Warrior, and other special furry events.
FWA 2005 will be held at the Holiday Inn Atlanta-Airport-North (1380 Virginia Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30344). The phone number is (404) 762-8411. Just mention “Furry Weekend” for a special room rate of only $62.00 a night!
Memberships at FWA2005 come in several levels, the most basic being an Attending Membership for $40.00. Supporting (non-attending) Memberships are also available for $15.00, and various levels of Sponsorship are available too. Check the FWA web site at www.furryweekend.com for more information, or to download a registration pdf file.
Megaplex 4
Let’s hit the road, and travel down the middle of the Sunshine State. Along Interstate 4, and right next door to Sea World, we will experience MEGAPLEX 4! March 11 – 13, 2005.
Megaplex 4 will be held at the Sheraton World Resort, 10100 International Drive Orlando, FL 32821. Rooms have been negotiated for *$99 a night (plus 6.5% state sales tax and 5% occupancy tax). For Reservations, call (800) 327-0363 and use reservation code: MEGAPLEX. Resort services include Transportation to Walt Disney World Theme Parks and the Florida Mall. Sea World is within walking distance of the Hotel, and there is a nominal $6 fee for transportation to Universal Studios.
To find out more information on memberships and Special Guests (as they get it), visit the Megaplex web site at http://ppmp.info.
Don’t Forget – Coming Soon: The Ursa Major Awards for 2004!
More formally known as the Annual Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Award, the Ursa Major Award is presented annually for excellence in the furry arts. It is intended as Anthropomorphic (a.k.a. Furry) Fandom’s equivalent of the Hugo Award ® (presented by the World Science Fiction Society), mystery fandom’s Anthony Award, horror fandom’s Bram Stoker Award, and so forth.
Anyone may nominate. Nominations for 2004 works will open during January 2005. However, recommendations are now being accepted for inclusion in the 2004 Recommended Anthropomorphics List (available for viewing at www.ursamajorawards.com) which is being constantly updated. Voting for the 2004 Ursa Major Award will take place during the first half of 2005. Please contact us if you wish to receive a ballot (see below). The Award will be presented at Anthrocon 2005 in Philadelphia in July.
To be eligible, a work must have been released between January 1 and December 31 of the calendar year for that award, and must include a non-human being given human attributes (anthropomorphic), which can be mental and/or physical (for example the intelligent rabbits in Watership Down for the former, and Bugs Bunny for the latter.) Simply including an animal character is not sufficient to qualify. Nominations are not limited to items included on the Recommended Anthropomorphics List, which are simply some people’s recommendations. Any works first published during the year under consideration are eligible. The Ursa Major Award categories include Best Anthropomorphic: Motion Picture, Dramatic Short Work or Series, Novel, Short Fiction, Other Literary Work (such as short story collections or art portfolio books, etc.), Comic Book, Comic Strip (paper or on-line), Fanzine, Published Illustration, Game (FRP or video), and Miscellany (items that don’t fit elsewhere, such as toys or models, etc.).
To find out more about the Ursa Major Awards for 2004, visit the web site or send an SASE to: Ursa Major Award, c/o Fred Patten, 11863 West Jefferson Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90230-6322, U.S.A.
That’s all for this time folks – and all for this year! Remember, In-Fur-Nation is back on a quarterly schedule, so our next issue will come to you bright and early in January of 2005. So look for us then! Keep up with the World Wide Furry Movement here in the pages of In-Fur-Nation!